


Hiraeth

by AgenderUmby



Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Hiraeth - Fandom
Genre: D&D, Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Mana ( character ), Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Rokpick Stoneskin, hiraeth
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-25
Updated: 2018-12-21
Packaged: 2019-07-17 11:14:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,983
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16094540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AgenderUmby/pseuds/AgenderUmby
Summary: Hiraeth is a story of three adventurers, all with a different and similar story of how they chose to adventure in the islands of Waterway Isle.





	1. Chapter Zero: "Prologue"

"Hiraeth is a Welsh word that is somewhat difficult to describe in English, for the reason that there is no single English word that expresses all that it does. Some words often used to try to explain it are homesickness, yearning, and longing. [...] 

[...]One attempt to describe hiraeth in English says that it is “a longing to be where your spirit lives.” This description makes some sense out of the combination of words that describe this feeling.  The place where your spirit feels most at home may be a physical location that you can return to at any time, or it may be more nostalgic of a home, not attached to a place, but a time from the past that you can only return to by revisiting old memories. Maybe your spirits home could even be neither of the above, one from which you are not only separated by space or time, but instead a place that never was, where you can only go in your imagination." -- SAMANTHA KIELAR (via sites.psu.edu).  
_________________________________________  
Prologue 

There is an unspoken rule of nature; one that most everyone agrees to be true. Life and Death is a cycle. Things that live in this world are made whole from the things that die and, eventually, the living things die and make whole another life after their own. There are, as with everything else, skeptics and people who try to defy this rule.

Those who push against this cycle are seen as outcasts, as insane in their thoughts, in their wants. These people are made through the cycle of life and death. They grieve, they regret, they remember, they beg, and, when they are denied what they have been grieving over, they push. For their geivences, for their pain, for their despairing, they are punished; as is expected with all laws.

Though there are those who monitor this cycle and attempt to keep balance in the world, there will always be outliers, ones who are forgotten, and those who are growing to the point of the "Pushers" but still have room for change in them.

Here we find our protagonists. Broken, suffering, and afraid. Each struck with their own form of...

"HIRAETH"


	2. Chaper One : "Meetings"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bustling motions of the small town of Osin'eb was surprising to say the least. Small towns on Waterway Isle were usually slow and quiet, uncaring for many things aside from trading and hunting. Osin'eb was mainly inhabited by elves, so the high elf riding into town would hopefully not be unwanted here.

The bustling motions of the small town of Osin'eb was surprising to say the least. Small towns on Waterway Isle were usually slow and quiet, uncaring for many things aside from trading and hunting. Osin'eb was mainly inhabited by elves, so the high elf riding into town would hopefully not be unwanted here. 

The elf was riding into town upon a large dog, a Tibetan Mastiff. He gave out a sigh and turned the dog towards an alleyway, his voice completely monotonous as he spoke.  
"Here will be fine, M'venk, I need to see what we need to buy before continuing onward." The dog gave a huff as she lied down, allowing her rider to get off before she went to sit beside him. The elf began to look through his items before he was interrupted by a shout. He looked out of the alley and saw a blast of fire pass. Standing up, he patted M'venk before looking down the street. There, he saw three figures, a human and two half elves, the human's hand was glowing from the spell he had just cast. They were surrounding someone that he couldn't quite make out.

The high elf walked through the crowd that was already forming around the others.  
"What's going on here?" He asked, directing his question to the human.  
"Don't worry, buddy, we're just making sure the town's all safe. Don't want things like this leading people to the dark. We have enough of that without them." The human kicked the being in the center of the circle the three had made. He looked down at the figure, and he tenses up at the sight.  
In the center of this circle, there lies a tiefling. They look bad off, their clothes torn and burnt, their face and body bloodied, even a few spots on their horns were chipped. There was a long pause between his next words.  
"Looks like you're not doing a very good job. You're still here." He said, his voice was unchanging but his face was full of disgust for the three in front of him. He moved to the center and stood above the bloodied figure, feeling relief when he saw that they were still breathing. "You should go."

The next thing he felt was a burst of pain in his chest as the human cast magic missile. The elf felt his knees go weak, but he stood his ground, raising up his hand and casting a ray of frost. The human just barely moved out of the way and went to strike at him with a dagger, missing the elf as he moved from the strike. He was preparing to cast again but a hand grabbed his shoulder. When he looked back, he saw the Osin'eb militia. He looked back towards the human and two half elves and saw them being pulled away to the sheriff's office down the road.

"I see that you are new to town, so I'll let you go with a warning here. Try not to get into any more fights, alright?" The officer said, giving him a nod and looking down at the tiefling. "And tell your... friend? Not to get into trouble again." And with that, he left towards the office as the rest of the militia dispersed the crowd. The elf was about to leave back towards the alley when he felt a small tug at the bottom on his robe. He looked down and saw the tiefling, a pained smile on their face.  
"Mind helping me up, frosty?" Their voice was strained as they spoke, an obvious sign that they were still in a lot of pain, but there was still a bit of humor behind it. He thought for a moment before helping them up and walking them to the alleyway where M'venk was sitting, tense but seeming to relax when her owner returned.

"You may rest here while I go through my things." He said, continuing his earlier routine. There was a brief moment of silence before the tiefling spoke again.  
"Thank you for helping be back there. Not many would even think about doing that! Especially not with a crowd. My name is Determination Percivae, what's your name, frosty?"  
"Geldrid." He said, not even looking up from his bag. "Don't take what the officer said to heart. I'm not your friend, or anyone's for that matter. Just a guy on an island, that is all."  
"Sure, sure. You need a place to stay? I have a room at the Dragon Tear tavern, we could share a room or... maybe I could buy you a separate room. Either one is fine." When they said that Geldrid finally looked up, now able to get a better look at them.

They were purple skinned and their eyes were a bright yellow. Their hair was black and curled down to the neck, and their horns were like that of a ram's, curled inward around their ears, their tail was long and thin with a tuft of fur at the end of it. They were wearing a soft green dress with a crimson sash around their waist, in their hands was a torn, collared leather vest that they were casting a mending spell on.  
"That would be nice. Yes. I will take you up on that offer." He said. Their eyes seemed to light up and they smiled, taking Geldrid's hand and shaking it excitedly.   
"Oh, how wonderful, I am so glad I could do something to help you out!" Their clawed hand strangely felt like bark from a tree. He shook off his thoughts and decided to continue looking through his things.  
"I am as well, not many are as kind to strangers as you."  
"Well, you did just save my life, so it's really the least I could do. Do you need any healing? Those missiles looked like they really hurt." Before Geldrid could answer, Determination's hands glowed a soft green and they placed their hands where the attack had hit, casting cure wounds on him. He had a warm feeling for just a split second before they pulled their hands to their chest, hissing in pain.

"I'm sorry. It wasn't very strong. I can cast it again if you--" Geldrid cut them off before they could cast another spell.  
"It's alright, I just need to rest. Save your slots for yourself, you are much worse off than I am, let's just go to the tavern." Determination smiles and stands up, leading him there.


	3. Hiraeth - Chapter Two "Preparations"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Geldrid and Determination find a job and prepare for the journey.

The tavern was a few blocks down the street and Geldrid was beginning to regret accepting the invitation, watching as the townsfolk stared at him being pulled to a tavern by a tiefling. They usually averted their gaze when M'venk looked at them, so there was at least that to be thankful for. Something he was not thankful for was Determination's talking. The entire. Way. There.

"It's right over here. Oh, they have the best food in all of Osin'eb! At least, out of the places I'm allowed in. I swear someone needs to put some sense in the world. Or maybe just this island. Actually! You know what, I was-" he kept an eye around their surroundings as they continued to ramble on. There wasn't much, just a few stores; the usual trading post, a magic shop, the usual blacksmith, there was surprisingly an armory in the town. He made a note to visit that later as he was tugged into the tavern.

"Aaand, here it is! Dragon Tear Tavern." They waved at the bartender, an orc woman. Odd, but not unheard of. "Hey, Mana, will it cost any more to put frosty here in my room?" Geldrid waved as well, feeling nervous when M'venk followed them in. Even more so when Mana stared between the elf and dog. She spoke, her voice gruff and a little stuffy, perhaps because of her tusks.

"Big dog. For health or no?"  
"No ma'am, she is just my companion."  
Mana looked to M'venk. "Bear hunter dog, my favorite kind. She likes petting or no?"   
"Yes, she's fine with being petted."  
"May I? Dogs make a good friend."

Geldrid just nodded stiffly and went over to her. Mana let M'venk sniff at her before she pet the dog. "...hm. Good. Healthy. No fear... no extra pay. Dog man is good person. Breakfast in morning is free. Lunch needs pay, three copper for meal. Dinner is less, two copper. Room is upstairs, enjoy stay. You are good person. Name?" She asks.  
Geldrid is at a loss for words for a moment before responding. "My name is Geldrid."  
"Geldrid is good person. Be nice." She goes back to her work after washing her hands and Determination leads him upstairs.

The room is small, but comfortable. M'venk can fit, so it's fine for Geldrid. It has a bed and a sack in the corner by the window. The shutters are open at the moment. There is also a bedside table, but that is it. Just a small room in a tavern.   
"Mana runs the place, she's really nice. She helped me out when I first came to town a week ago." Determination said, taking their jacket off and setting it on the table. "I wouldn't have a place to stay if she didn't find me." Their tail swayed as they spoke, pausing for a moment before turning to Geldrid. "Really. I know it may not have seemed... genuine earlier, but, thank you."  
There was a stiff silence as he tried to find words, surprised at the sudden calmness and sincerity in their voice. Determination laughed at the silence and sat on the bed.

"Hey, I've been talking enough for the both of us and your dog since you helped me out. You got a story or would you rather keep that to yourself?"  
"...I suppose since we're off the streets I can tell you... a little bit. Though, there is not much for me to tell. M'venk and I ran from home. I did not quite belong there, so I left. I have been traveling for several years now, and now I am here. There is not much to my story." Geldrid said, still seeming hesitant.

"Yeah, sometimes less is better though! It's... much better than my story. I left home because of... a house fire... it wasn't very fun. But hey! I'm here and I'm adventuring! It's not too bad when we look at it like that."

"I suppose that's true." Geldrid looked out the window before moving to close the shutters. "We should rest. I'm going to look around the town in the morning. Gather some supplies, look for a job--"  
"Oh! A job? Like an adventurer job? There's a bulletin downstairs for all sorts of jobs! Like looking around caves and delivering stuff, things like that."  
"That... that does sound nice. Alright, I will look to the bulletin for a job offer then. For now, we need sleep. Well, you need sleep, but you get what I'm saying."  
"Yeah, alright, sounds good. G'night frosty." They chuckled a bit before covering up and falling asleep.

Geldrid laid his items next to M'venk and took the saddle off of her. "You walked far this week, thank you, M'venk." He lied down against her and began his meditation.

 

The air was crisp in the morning, as it is in most small towns on Waterway Isle. Geldrid sits up and rubs his eyes. He looks around the room to see Determination looking into the mirror, flipping the collar of their jacket up and down repeatedly before settling with having it down.

"Yeah. She seems nice for today." She said, smiling and turning around. "Oh! Mornin' frosty! You ready to look for some jobs?" She seems really energetic for it being six in the morning. Geldrid, however, just huffs and lies back down, trying to go back to sleep. M'venk stands up and stretches, licking at him until he stands up.  
"Mmn, alright. What was that with the collar thing?" He asked, rubbing his eyes once again.   
"Oh, it's just me today. Collar up means I'm a guy, collar down is a girl, and no jacket means I'm neither! I came up with it myself!" She says, puffing her chest out proudly.  
"Neat. Let's get breakfast." He muttered. Determination laughs and rolls her eyes.   
"Sure thing, frosty."

They eat and discuss the types of work they're willing to do and decide that a delivery job would be good for the both of them. Determination chooses the job and brings it back to the table. It is written in common.

'Deliverers Required: A cart with valuables will be given to adventures to deliver to Rokpick Stoneskin in the town of Farhide. Speak with the local blacksmith for more information. The rewards for the delivery will be 4 health potions and 200 gold pieces.'

"Sounds like a nice job. I've been to Farhide before, it isn't that far from here. About a two day travel at worst fifteen hours at best." Geldrid says, looking over the notice. "And it's for two hundred gold and four health potions! Sounds like a nice cart of stuff." Determination's tail flicked as she spoke. "We'd have to split it if we work together, but that's still a lot of gold, you wanna do it with me?"  
"Yes. Safety in numbers in all. And it has been quite a while since I traveled with someone other than M'venk."  
"Great! Let's do our stuff and start tomorrow, sound good?"  
Geldrid nods and Determination stands up, grabbing her plate. "Good, see you this afternoon, frosty." She hands the plate to Mana and leaves with a wave.

Geldrid smiles and finishes his food. He does the same as Determination, but he hands Mana a gold piece.  
"...breakfast is free."  
"I know."  
"...this is gold."  
"Yes."  
"...you are good person, very kind. Be careful. The town is not as kind."  
Geldrid nods and leaves the tavern with M'venk.

Determination hums as she walks down the street, keeping an eye out, just in case. She doesn't seem to see anything and makes it safely to her destination. A trading post on the other side of town. She goes around back and knocks. "Intraego"  
There's a small click and the door opens. She walks in and goes directly to a dwarven woman behind a trading station. She smiles when he sees her.

"Ah, Percivae! To whom do I owe the honor of seeing you, my dear friend?"   
"A guy named Rokpick, he needs something delivered. I just came to say that I'm leaving town tomorrow. Is, uh... is Joy here?"  
"I'm afraid he had to leave this mornin'. People were spreadin' lies an' I'm sure you know how that goes."  
"Yeah, I guess so. You have any new items for trade?"  
"Yes actually! I just got a few things yesterday, take a look." She moves to the side so Determination can see. There were many things in racks and drawers, but something caught her eye.  
"What's that?" She asked, pointing to a necklace with a jagged igneous stone on it.

The dwarf grabbed it and held it up to her.  
"This here is the 'Enigma of Igneous.' It let's you understand any language you want. What do you have to trade for it?"  
Determination hummed, going through her bag.   
"Hm... I have this." She pulls a flute case from her bag, smiling slyly. "This here was given to me from the Dracold family themselves. It's very valuable. You could sell it for so much gold, you wouldn't even need to work here anymore."  
"The Dracolds!? Gods- that's- You have a deal!" The two traded items, and Determination left after giving the dwarven woman a hug. She put the necklace on, her walk now bouncing much less than before.

Geldrid walked along the streets with M'venk, going to the blacksmith first. There were displays in the front of the store and a light clanging noise was coming from the back. He walked over and knocked on the wooden frame, grabbing the other elf's attention.  
"Ah, hello. I am here about the delivery job? My acquaintance and I wish to accept it."

The other elf gave Geldrid a smile and continued working on the greatsword.  
"Sounds neat. Tell me your names and I'll send a falcon on over so Rokpick knows you're comin'."  
"Well, I am Geldrid and my acquaintance's name is Determination."  
"Good to know, I'll send a falcon over there 's soon as possible. You'll be given a days ration each, a cart, and horse. You'll be going through the woods so keep a watch out for goblins an' stuff. 'S not a dangerous job, but the stuff on the cart 's important to the guy, nothing really too valuable to be honest. Anything else you need?"  
"Oh, yes actually. Do you happen to make longswords?"  
"Yeah, it'll take 'bout a day and a few silver though, you can meet me in th' mornin' for it if you have the coin. Like... for you... three silver to have it made from scratch, if you bring me metal it'll only be one."

Geldrid nods, putting three of his silver coin on the table beside the blacksmith.   
"I will be back in the morning then." He leaves with a wave and continues on with his day.


	4. Chapter Three : Onward

The rest of the day went by normally. Preparations were made and they met back at the tavern for dinner. Geldrid paid in thanks for letting him stay. Mana made food for M'venk, saying 'It is no charge. Dog is good.' And they ate, well, Geldrid ate. Determination hadn't touched her food. And she was much more quiet than this morning, Geldrid was the one to break the silence this time when he sighed.

"Are you alright? You seem... quiet." He asked awkwardly.  
"Mmhm. I just... I think I did a bad thing today... see this necklace?" She holds up the Enigma of Ingneous, still around her neck. "I got it in a trade but... I lied... I gave her a flute and said it was given to me by the Dracold family, but... I just... I felt like I needed to have this, but I don't... I don't know..."  
"...the Dracolds are a very... rich family. But I believe it is worth it for the necklace. Besides, a bard with a flute can raise the dead, so I believe it was a somewhat fair trade. Now eat, we have to get up in the morning."  
Determination smiled, finally eating some. She was still quiet, but the stress at the table was gone. They slept well that night and woke in the morning. Determination decided to keep the collar down. The blacksmith was outside waiting for them, smiling and handing Geldrid a sheathed longsword.  
"Was a pleasure meetin' ya. You two be safe now."  
They thanked him and rode off, Determination on the horse and Geldrid on M'venk. 

 

The ride down the path to Farhide was uneventful during the first twelve hours. Peaceful winds blew and they sat to eat and discuss the rewards. It was nearly three in the afternoon. As they were almost two thirds the way there, Determination slowed the horse a little, looking into the brush.  
"Geldrid. You might wanna get your sw--" Before she could finish her warning, an arrow flew out from the other side of the path, just missing Geldrid by an inch, but surprising him into falling off of M'venk. Determination put her shield on and grabbed her sickle from her belt.

M'venk, shocked and angry at whatever knocked her owner off, snapped at the closest enemy, a Scimitar wielding goblin. The goblin rolled out of the way and took a slash at her, hitting her in the back. Another goblin stuck its head out of the brush, aiming a bow towards Geldrid, just barely missing him once again. He stands up, clenching his fist tightly and glaring at the goblin who hurt M'venk, his eyes sharp with anger. He holds his sparking hand out and three glowing darts shoot out from his palm, hitting the enemy and sending it flying, leaving it limp. Determination smiled.  
"That was rad!" She called out as she galloped by him on the horse, taking a swing at the other goblin with her Scemitar, hitting him, but just barely. M'venk charges at the goblin, snapping at him with her powerful jaws, biting through his armor and keeping him still. It attempts, and fails, to escape her jaws. Geldrid took a breath and walked over. He grabbed the shortbow and took the goblin's quiver.  
"You will go home and you will not speak of this. You will do good or I will find you and allow M'venk to finish what you had foolishly started. Understand?" The goblin nodded. "M'venk! Ntọl'ha!" With that, M'venk let go, keeping sharp watch as the goblin ran back into the woods.

"Wow, that was so cool! And that missile thing you did? Just- amazing!" Determination got off of the horse and petted M'venk, casting a spell and healing her fully. "Are you okay sweetheart?" She asked, petting her behind her ears. "You did so good, yes you did!" Geldrid cleared his throat to get her attention.  
"We should continue in case they did not truly heed my words." He said, petting M'venk and hopping on her. "Good job."

The duo continued on, having to stop for the night. They made a fire and ate, soon falling asleep, Geldrid kept first watch and Determination second. They woke in the morning and finished their travel to Farhide.


End file.
